(KRON) — A French-born kayaker has successfully completed the over 2,400-mile journey from Monterey to Hawaii in a solo expedition. Cyril Derreumaux, who describes himself as a “world traveler, serial entrepreneur and avid adventurer” on his website, set out in June and completed the 91 day, nine hour journey on Tuesday.

He completed the journey on his own, paddling his ocean kayak “Valentine,” through fog, rough seas, wind and swells. Along the way, he encountered whales, sunfish, albatross and even flying fish that were so big and flew so high, he mistook them for birds. According to a liveblog tracker of the journey, he faced obstacles that included headwinds, “gnarly seas” and having to fix his boat “McGyver style.”

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While on his journey, he slept in an onboard “cocoon,” found motivation in music, poured water over his head to stay cool and even celebrated his 46th birthday. While a previous attempt to make the journey solo from San Francisco was unsuccessful, he made the trip with teammates in 2016, taking first place in the Great Pacific Rage, an ocean rowing race from Monterey to Oahu.

Along with updates on his progress, he posted messages along the way, the final post of the trip coming earlier this week as he paddled into Hilo.

“Last post of the trip,” he posted. “Hard to find what to say. Keep it simple, that’s always best. The one thought that comes to mind is THANK YOU.”